GARDENING NOTES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18323, 13 August 1921, Page 3

GARDENING NOTES.

By D. Tanwook.

work: for the week. THE GREENHOUSE AND NURSERY. Continue to increase the stocks of budding plants by striking cuttings, lobelia, agathcea, and cuplisea being plants which are best grown for cuttings, and all being suitable lor edgings. Lobelia oan bo raised from seed, but it is liable to come mixed, and when used for edgings the dwarf compact kind is the best. Seeds of begonias and gloxinias can bo sown now, and if they are grown on steadily they will form flowering plants by the autumn, and also form nice little corms suitable next year’s flowering. The pots have' o be prepared in the usual ■way but the sCrface soil has to be made ■very lino and smooth, and it is advisable to soak the pots in tepid water before sowing. Open the seed packets very carefully and dust the seeds, which are very line, evenly over the surface; sprinkle with a little fine sand, which helps to keep the seeds in position, and then stand the pots in a warm part of the propogating house; cover with a sheet of glass and shade with a piece of brown paper until the seedlings appear. The best exhibits of these useful greenhouse plants at the recent Chelsea Show were made by Messrs Blaekmore and Langdown (Turenton Hill, Bart), Messrs Carter and Co. (Raynes Park, London), and Messrs Sutton and Sons (Reading). _

The dry tubers of both begonias and gloxinias will now bo starting into growth and it is better to shake them out and lay thorn in close together in boxes vof light soil, just covering them with some of the soil. Give one good watering and stand in a warm part of the greenhouse, or up on a shelf. When growth has commenced and root action is fairly active they can ho potted up into their flowering pot. I consider it less work than potting them all up singly in small pots, and they take up less room, when space is so valuable during the spring months. Maintain a growing atmosphere in all the plant houses by spraying and damping during bright, sunny days, and shutting up the ventilators early in the afternoon to shut in the sun heat. THE FLOWER GARDEN.

The rose pruning season will soon be on, but there is no advantage in commencing it too soon, even when growth becomes active and buds begin to form at the ends of the shoots. There are plenty of dormant buds lower down which will grow out end make quite satisfactory flowering shoots. When pruned early, growth commences early, and the young, tender shoots are liable to bo cut back by late spring frosts. This happened in both England and Scotland this season, and the rose growth is anything but satisfactory,—not like our growth in New Zealand. Rose growing at Home is very difficult; tho wood is often cut right down to the ground by the frost, and there is little or nothing to prune in the spring. Rose pruning is like any other pruning; it means reducing the number of buds on tho plant so that nearly all may grow out into flowering shoots. The roses are produced on the young shoots, which grow out from the dormant buds—that is, on tho young wood; and the number of rose-bear-in tr shoots which the plants can produce will depend on the vigour of the plant. Plants with a strong, vigorous constitution like General Macarthur, Hugh Dickson, and Caroline Test out can produce a lot of blooms—probably two dozen —whereas a weak-growing kind like Lilian Moore may not be able for more than three or four. Before commencing operations it is wise to get all the tools collected together. These will consist of a pair of good strong secateurs, a small saw to cut out extra strong shoots which would strain tho secateurs, a sharp knife, a pair of strong pruning gloves, and a leather or waterproof pad to kneel on. It is well to commence the operations by cutting out all dead wood; next, open up the centre of the plants to give the young growth room to develop. If there are plenty of shoots to select from choose the nice well-ripened ones rather thicker than a lead pencil, and also those which arise at the ground surface or as low down as possible. All thin, twiggy growths can be out out, for they have not the power to produce good blooms, and the very stout ones are unripened, pithy, and, if left, would produce coarse roses with double centres or other malformations. Tho object for which the roses are grown has also co receive consideration at pruning time If for exhibition, then they are cub much harder back; if for cut flowers, medium cutting is required-, if for garden decoration, pruning. In. the first a few blooms of extra size are required; in the last a lot of blooms of medium size are

ksirpd. * When the gardener has removed all the lead wood, the shoots in the centre, the eery stout, unripened ones, and the thin, twiggy ones, and reduced the balance to the required number, those left are shortened hack to a good plump bud painting away irom. the centre of the plant. Aa it is necessary to finish off the cut surface nicely and smoothly, any rough or ra"°-ed ends are trimmed with the knife; Mid° should there be_ any very large suraces they can he painted over with tar. To get larger crops off climbers and itrong-growing varieties, the strong shoots ire pegged down in a horizontal position, vhich places all the buds about the same evel- they all receive an equal share of he sap, and all grow out into flowering lh Wh*en pruning for pegging down all the lid shoots are cut right out, and also all bin twiggy ones. Ihe unnpened tips ot he shoots are then pruned off, and they are ied down to good strong pegs driven firmly nto the ground. , , . „ , After pruning, collect all the snooty and iu ni them, and if the beds are planted with tilip or other bulbs, give a good dusting if bone meal and basic phosphate, and fork

When violas and pansies are grown among he roses, give a good dressing of well■otted farmyard'manure end dig it in, but lo not dig too deeply close into the plants. is the young shoots are the strongest and icalthiest, and produce the ' )ret , fl< ? wera ’ all mr efforts, when pruning, should be to get ■id of the old wood and. whenever possible.

o renew the bush every yean . Continue to repair the paths and lawns, o plant out ornamental trees and shrubs, ,nd to dig and replant the herbucceous °Growth has now commenced on the roek urdan, and as slugs aro very fond of the oune shoots and buds a sharp lookou “ ' o bo kept for them. Dust their haunts rith soot or freshly-slaked hmo and water 10 spreading patches of mossy phlox, etc. rith lime water. All top-dressing and replanting should have een done in the autumn, but if it was not ttended to then it ia better late than ever, and should be done now. Fork up tne arface soil with a hand fork remove all reeds and moss, and give a light top-dross-ig with a mixture composed of granite hips or gravel one part, loaf-mould one art, dean loam one part, sand half a

part, and lime rubble half a part. Very tine dwarf saxifrages and other choice hinds should be top-dressed with the granite chips only. Renew the labels and get everything into order for the spring and summer display. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. Continue to dig and trench, and to make small sowing of early kinds. THE OUTDOOR EXHIBITS AT CHELSEA SHOW. In addition to the many exhibits under canvas there were extensive exhibits of rock and water gardens, hardy trees and shrubs, horticultural implements, and sundries out of doors, and under the weather conditions which prevailed it was far more pleasant in the open under the shade of the trees than in the tents. The trouble winch the builders of the rock gardens had gone to to produce a natural and artistic effect was remarkable. They had excavated hollows for pools and water gardens, thrown up banks to form rocky outcrops and planted them with pine and spruce trees to givo a natural-looking background. In every case water was laid on, and this cither trickled down mossy banks or tumbled down, forming miniature cascades. Tons and tons of beautiful weathered rock had been carted in, and this was used in a most effective manner, providing ample pockets, which were planted with choice alpine plants in full bloom. It did seem to be a lot of trouble and expense for a three days’ show, but it must pay, and it is safe to say that these rock water gardens created more interest than any other section of the large exhibition. Wall and formal gardens were also well done, beautiful old walls planted with creeping and alpine plants surrounded formal gardens, with paths of crazy paving planted with creeping alpine and other dwarf plants. One of the most pleasing of those formal gardens was laid out in an iris garden, the formal beds being divided off with paths of crazy paving, and each little bed was planted with a different kind of iris in full flower. The iris garden is very bright for a month or so while the plants are in flower, and the rest of the year very uninteresting. Therefore it is much better to plant them in a secluded garden by themselves surrounded by a hedge or wall, where they do not interfere with the general landscape effect. There was a grass garden which was more peculiar than beautiful, and several largo groups of rhododendrons and other flowering shrubs.

Though I fail to admire clipped or cut bushes and trees, there must be a demand for these peculiar creations of the gardeners’ art. Plants of box, yew, etc., were clipped into peacocks, armchairs, columns and all sorts of other odd shapes, and when one considers the time it mugt take to build up these large specimens, it is not surprising that they are expensive. Another section of plant malformation was the retarded or dwarfed trees exhibited by the Yokohama Nursery Company. They are really very wonderful, and with them it was quite possible to have a complete Japanese garden on a meat dish. This form of gardening should be popular in places whore land is scare© and gardens small. There were several exhibits of lawn mowers, chiefly motor driven, step-ladders, greenhouses, rustic houses, and forcing frames.

It is quite evident that the allotments have come to stay, and horticultural builders are out to provide them with small green houses and frames; these were made in sections, easily and quickly put vip and taken down again should a shift be necessary. There were also extensive exhibits of spraying machines, sprays, manures, etc.: in fact, no section of horticulture was neglected. Though the Chelsea Show is the largest and most popular, the Royal Horticultural Society hold a largo summer show at Holland House, and I hope to be able to see it before I sail for New Zealand.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. “Amateur,” Waimate. —A good, artificial manure for general use in the vegetable garden can be prepared as follows; —-Mix together equal parts of dried blood, superphosphate, and kainit. Apply to the soil at the rate of 4oz to the square yard. Bonedust (or a mixture of bonedust and dried blood which is now on the market) is a good safe manure to use and suits most crops. Two or three cwt will be sufficient to do a quarter of an acre. Wood ashes and soot from hard coals should never be wasted, having a manurial value, they improve the condition of the soil. “H. K.”—The following is a simple recipe for grafting wax:—Melt and mix together lib each of beeswax and tallow and 21b of resin. During grafting the wax should be lukewarm, so that it can be easily applied with a brush or putty knife. A method employed amongst orchardists is to spread the mixture while hot over a sheet of paper and to cut it when cool into strips about an inch wide. These adhesive strips can then be readily wound about the grafts. Although it would bo quite possible to graft apples or pears on your medlars, the orchardist and nurseryman never us© this plant as a stock. As a matter of fact in Europe where the medlar is extensively grown, it is the practice to graft it on to Sie quince or some other suitable stock. “B. R.” —(1) The knots on the portion of quince tree forwarded are known as “galls” and are caused by a species of the gall-fly, which lays its eggs in the branches of the tree. When the eggs hatch Out into small grubs they injure the crowing colls, thereby causing what is known as “local growth.” Spraying periodically with arsenate of lead will keep off attacks from the > fly. As arsenate of lead being highly poisonous, it should not be used once the fruit commences to ripen. (2) The name of the pot plant is Cotyledon canauinn (sometimes called Echeveria). When grown in a pot it requires good drainage and a fair percentage of sharp sand and charcoal mixed with the potting soil. It can subsist if kept dry for a long period, but beyond keeping it on the dry side during the winter months, it can bo watered as often as .any other not plant. It_ will grow outside if planted in a well drained, sunnv position that is sheltered from frosts. (3) The answers to the remainder of your questions will bo included in next week’s Notes.